


Platonic「Meanie」

by honeyjamx



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Attempt at Humor, Eventual Smut, Homophobia, M/M, Romantic Comedy, i'll add more tags later i'm bad at this, in comes mingyu, jun is an asshole but in the best way, mingyu is slightly dense lmao, pretty soft at times, seungcheol and wonwoo are brothers yo!, wonwoo is in need of tlc
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-21
Updated: 2019-03-28
Packaged: 2019-08-25 21:42:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,421
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16668841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/honeyjamx/pseuds/honeyjamx
Summary: Maybe,just maybe,it was a bit unusual how close Jeon Wonwoo was to his best friend. Sure, it was one thing to love and cherish a close friend, but sometimes Wonwoo wondered if his admiration for the younger boy was a bit extreme.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this was meant to be completely soft and lighthearted but idk what happened halfway through developing the plot lol.  
> i also posted this on wattpad under my alternate account ssenunnialexia, but if you see it published under any other name it is stolen and i would very much appreciate if someone told me ♡

Maybe,  _just maybe_ , it was a bit unusual how close Jeon Wonwoo was to his best friend. Sure, it was one thing to love and cherish a close friend, but sometimes Wonwoo wondered if his admiration for the younger boy was a bit extreme.

"Mingyu's personality, his looks... just everything. I like everything about him a lot, but in a hetero way, y'know?" Wonwoo tried to explain to Junhui who sat next to him in their first period class.

"Nah, I'm pretty sure you just confessed to wanting to bone him. You're practically saying 'I'm in love with him, but no homo,' but everyone knows saying 'no homo' makes it even more homo." Junhui teased with a grin causing the younger to fling his pencil at him.

Junhui groaned in exaggerated pain when the pencil made contact with his cheek making Wonwoo roll his eyes.

Wen Junhui was very intelligent. He was a transfer student all the way from Shenzhen with honour roll status and he was known for studying and researching 'just for fun.' Wonwoo had been hoping somewhere in that smart head of his, Junhui would have an answer as to why he was feeling such a way about his best friend, but all he got was teasing in response.

Not to say Wonwoo wasn't intelligent. In fact, he liked to consider himself the intellectual of their friend group. He just wasn't as knowledgeable when it came to relationships considering he was an introvert who avoided them.

"It wasn't a confession. It's just what I feel." Wonwoo muttered with a scowl as more people reluctantly filed into the first period mathematics class.

Ever since the semester had started Wonwoo had decided whoever thought it was a good idea to have a mathematics first thing in the morning was the spawn of Satan. Nobody was ever alert enough so early to care about sinusoidal graphs and what dimensions Joanne should use for her garden to optimize the amount of space she had for her cabbages.

"What you feel is love. You're in love with him." Junhui persisted in a serious tone, but his expression made it clear he was still poking fun at the younger boy.

"You're really trying to fight me right now."

"Just admit it."

"Shut the fuck up." Wonwoo snapped in frustration, his voice much louder and harsher than he had intended it to be causing a few glances in their direction.

He almost apologized, but held his tongue when he saw Junhui smirk at how he could get Wonwoo riled up. It wasn't like Wonwoo hadn't considered that what Junhui was saying could be a possibility. He'd thought about it on numerous occasions and the fact that he even considered that he might be in love with Mingyu haunted him. He shouldn't have been feeling that way about a friend that was practically his brother. He was irritable enough as it was with his emotions making it difficult to think about things other than Mingyu and the last thing he needed was Junhui picking at something that was already bothering him.

"Chill, I'm just joking around." Junhui told Wonwoo with a playful grin, patting his shoulder as a peace offering that Wonwoo knew would only last until the older thought of another joke to make about the situation.

"Yeah, whatever."

"Hey, speak of the devil." Junhui murmured in a low voice causing Wonwoo to glance at the door just in time to see Kim Mingyu enter the room with his typical smile plastered on his face. He walked in with a female classmate whose name Wonwoo had never bothered to learn like most others in the class aside from Junhui and Mingyu. The girl playfully bumped into Mingyu with her shoulder, quite obviously flirting.

 _Fuck, he's_ _literally glowing_ , Wonwoo thought as he watched Mingyu laugh at something the girl had said. His brunette hair was styled in a purposely disheveled I-tried-but-not-hard-enough-for-it-to-be-obvious manner (which was a style Wonwoo had discovered he favoured on him). He was dressed simply that day in dark jeans, a hoodie, and sneakers, but he still looked as fresh and well put together. He was almost always sporting a radiant smile and with summer getting closer and the weather getting warmer, Mingyu's olive skin took on a sun-kissed glow.

"Hey, my dudes." Mingyu greeted after saying a quick goodbye to the girl, sitting at his desk and turning in his seat to face Wonwoo and Mingyu who sat behind him.

"Yo, what's up with you and Bora?" Junhui immediately asked Mingyu who raised a brow at the question.

Wonwoo assumed Bora was the girl Mingyu had come in with and he couldn't help how his interest peaked as they waited for the youngest of the three to respond. It wasn't completely unusual for girls to flirt with Mingyu, but it wasn't typical enough for them to not be interested when it happened.

"Not much, really." Mingyu replied with a shrug, "She just recently joined the music club and since I've been in the music committee for two years, I figured I'd take her under my wing. She asked for extra help practicing this year's song lineup."

"I'm pretty sure she was asking for much more than that," Wonwoo deadpanned, "Did you not see the way she was looking at you?"

Junhui nodded in agreement with a mischievous smirk, "Yeah, she looked ready to give it up to you."

If it wasn't the way Bora flipped her brunette hair in a flirty manner or made a point to stand ridiculously close to Mingyu then it was definitely her sultry gazes while she spoke with him that made it obvious she was into him.

"Bora didn't look at me any type of way. She's just friendly with everyone. She's out of my league anyway." Mingyu explained nonchalantly as he turned away from the two boys to arrange his books on his desk.

"Out of your league?" Wonwoo repeated in disbelief,  _How could anybody be out of his league?_

"You're out of her league, idiot." he added abruptly making Mingyu laugh and turn to look at him.

"You're really bipolar, you know that? When I say things implying I'm  _the_  shit, you knock me on my ass. When I say things implying I  _am_  shit, you're suddenly throwing out compliments." he said before turning back around to finish arranging his books, "Thanks, but you really don't have to say that to make me feel better."

"I'm not saying it to make you feel better." Wonwoo insisted, "You're practically perf--"

He didn't get to finish what he was saying because he was cut off by Junhui flicking the side of his head to get his attention.

 _Your gay is showing,_  Junhui mouthed and if it wasn't for the fact that Mingyu was there and would've wanted to know what the two were fighting about, Wonwoo would've gone on a cussing rampage that could've made sailors blush.

Instead, Wonwoo glared and mouthed back,  _Do you want to die?_   while gracefully flipping him the bird.

Junhui chuckled as if he thought Wonwoo was joking, but that point Wonwoo couldn't tell anymore because Junhui was about to get on his last nerve. He was lucky they were close friends or else Wonwoo would've already pummeled him into the ground.

Before Wonwoo could be given a chance to act on his thoughts of murder, their teacher walked in which in turn resulted in everyone becoming quiet.

"Good morning, class." Mr. Kim greeted which elicited a less than excited, "Good morning, Mr. Kim." from the class that sounded more like a collective groan than a greeting.

"Glad you're all excited to be here," Mr. Kim replied sarcastically making a few people laugh halfheartedly, "We have a lot to cover today so take out last night's homework so it can be collected and then we can get started."

When the class rep finished collecting the previous night's homework and Mr. Kim began teaching the lesson Wonwoo didn't hesitate to rest his head on his arms which were crossed on his desk, clearly preparing to sleep. If it wasn't for the fact that he still managed to have good grades despite rarely paying attention in class Mr. Kim would have gotten upset like he did if any other student fell asleep intentionally, but Wonwoo's marks kept him in the clear.

In addition to that, Mr. Kim knew Wonwoo was diagnosed as an insomniac since it was in his list of medical concerns on his student profile. The fact that he could rarely ever stay awake in class made numerous people think he cheated his way to getting high marks when in reality he always taught himself the content at night when he couldn't sleep to distract him from the thoughts that kept him up.

Wonwoo closed his eyes and waited for the sound of Mingyu tapping his short nails against his desk. The younger boy had a hard time sitting still for a long period of time and had a habit of drumming his fingers against things to alleviate his constant energy. While it annoyed most people, concentrating only on the quiet and steady sound is what lulled Wonwoo to sleep without his mind taking him to dark places.

Even then, a short nap during the lesson wasn't enough to help Wonwoo catch up on the proper amounts of sleep he'd been neglecting. The bell was waking him up much too soon to indicate the end of class and he had to suppress a groan. It would be okay for him to just stay in the class since Mr. Kim wouldn't mind and he didn't teach another class in the room until third period, but it would mean skipping phys-ed which was graded based on attendance. Wonwoo decided was worth it until he felt a hand ruffle his black hair.

"I know you heard the bell. Don't pretend you're still asleep. You have to go to your next class. Here," Mingyu said, waiting for Wonwoo to raise his head before handing him a bunch of papers, "it's today's notes."

"How many times do I have to tell you to stop taking down my notes? You really don't have to. I can figure out the work without the notes." Wonwoo replied.

He appreciated that Mingyu went out of his way to write out the notes for him, but he didn't like the idea of the younger boy doing so much for him when he didn't need to. He could use the time he took to write out Wonwoo's notes to finish his own homework so he could relax after school. Considering how busy Mingyu's schedule was he needed any break he could get.

"I don't doubt that you can. The notes will just make it infinitely easier. I'll go home with you today and help you go over it." Mingyu stated, not leaving room for objection as he stood from his seat.

"You can't just invite yourself to my house." Wonwoo drawled even though he knew very well that he could.

"Of course I can. Your grandma loves me more than you." the other retorted jokingly before taking his leave.

Sometimes Wonwoo was almost convinced that was true because his grandmother adored Mingyu's 'sunshine, rainbows, and a touch of mischief personality' (her words, not Wonwoo's) more than Wonwoo and his somberness. Wonwoo wasn't even sure how they'd become so close despite being such polar opposites. Mingyu was practically the literal sun, radiating warmth and kindness while Wonwoo... well, he was just about as warm as hour old coffee.

He was pretty sure if given the choice his grandmother would rather be Mingyu's guardian. Not that she didn't love Wonwoo-- she did to the bottom of her heart-- but it was difficult not to be attracted to Mingyu's bright character.

Still, Wonwoo wasn't ready for her to get alarmingly excited for a sixty-six year old when he brought Mingyu home.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you so much for checking this fic out! pls leave kudos and let me know how you felt about the writing! constructive criticism is ALWAYS welcome <3


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> not edited bc i gotta go to work so please excuse any mistakes TT will fix 'em ASAP!

"Ma?" Wonwoo called when he entered the home he shared with his grandmother and older brother.

Despite Wonwoo's grandmother being suspiciously wealthy-- she always claimed it was simply old money-- the house wasn't big by any means. If anything it was quite cozy. Everything followed a theme of light creams and browns aside from the rustic paintings and antique-looking vases that sat on shelves along the beige walls. Wonwoo was almost certain half of the decorations in the house were at least decades old.

"In the kitchen!" his grandmother called back.

"I brought you a surprise. He followed me home." Wonwoo announced when Mingyu trailed inside behind him but went straight to the powder room muttering, "I really gotta piss, dude."

The family cat, Socks, darted out of the living room at Wonwoo's voice to greet him at the door, mewling contently as she weaved through his legs before rubbing her face against his shin. Wonwoo was the only person in the household she seemed to like and he was convinced it was because Socks somehow knew everyone else had wanted to get a dog. Wonwoo had been adamantly against a dog because he had a fear of them and he was smitten when he first saw Socks at the animal shelter.

She had naturally occurring socks for goodness sake!

She was a black cat that had white discoloration only in her paws that made it look like she was perpetually wearing socks, hence the name. Although despite her cute name and appearance, she was a mean little cat to everyone but Wonwoo.

"What did you bring me? A dog? A husband? Preferably Rain or Heechul?" Ms. Jeon asked.

Wonwoo chuckled, shaking his head as he kicked off his shoes and made his way to the kitchen with Socks following behind him.

"Ma, if I brought home a dog Socks would bully it. Rain and Heechul are both three decades too young for you. Plus, Rain got married. Keep up with the times." he teased making Ms. Jeon scowl at her grandson and point the wooden spoon she had been washing at him.

"Let a woman dream. I'm still young and kicking." she said sharply, waving the spoon threateningly.

"At heart." Wonwoo tacked on resulting in the older woman throwing a dish cloth at him that he caught swiftly with a grin.

Although he constantly teased his grandmother about her age, in reality she was aging well. She groomed her hair regularly, dying the gray hairs so she had even black hair that fell just under her shoulders but was currently held up by a yellow scrunchy. She was a massive health food and exercise junkie so she still maintained healthy skin. The few wrinkles she had were mostly smile lines from years of living her life to the fullest. It almost felt like she was never idle. If she wasn't creating new extravagant recipes at home, she was volunteering to lead cooking classes at local community centers. If she wasn't socializing with her friends, she was making new ones at her traditional Korean dance lessons. If she wasn't at choir practice, she was giving in-home piano lessons. Activity was her anti-aging elixir and for a woman who was sixty-six, she had an impressive amount of energy. With how well she groomed and took care of herself she could pass for being forty.

"Having a hard time sleeping again?" Ms. Jeon asked, noticing the bags under Wonwoo's eyes when he went over to return the cloth she'd thrown at him.

"It's nothing new." he replied with a shrug.

"What happened to the meds you were prescribed?"

"They eventually stopped working after a couple weeks."

Ms. Jeon frowned, looking like she wanted to scold Wonwoo, but didn't have the heart to. She had told him on multiple occasions to let her know if there was a change in his health or if something happened with his medications, but Wonwoo was and always had been a private kid. He always tried to deal with things on his own and wouldn't speak up if he was having a hard time unless he was repeatedly prompted. As much as Ms. Jeon wanted him to feel more comfortable being open, trying to force him out of his shell would only make him withdraw even more.

"Maybe it's time to see the doctor again." she said, although her tone made it clear it wasn't a mere suggestion.

"Yes, ma'am." Wonwoo answered, dragging out his words to make his reluctance obvious.

Ms. Jeon smiled in approval before her expression lost it's concern and she attempted to lighten the mood as to not make Wonwoo uncomfortable any longer.

"But anyways, I might have to try insomnia out sometime. This whole corpse thing is a good look. It's like an all-natural smokey eye." she commented with a teasing grin.

"Eh, you don't have to try insomnia." Wonwoo replied, much more relaxed now that the serious talk was over, "You're almost old enough to be a corpse naturally. Just give it a bit more time."

"How do you put up with Wonwoo everyday?" Mingyu asked Ms. Jeon, interjecting in their lighthearted quarrel when he finally came into the kitchen only in time to hear Wonwoo's jab at his grandmother.

"Ah, Gyu!" she chirped excitedly.

She completely disregarded the dishes and dried her hands with a towel before quickly going to hug the young man, having to stand on her toes because he was so tall in comparison to the small, five-foot-nothing woman.

"Is he bullying you again?" Mingyu asked in reference to Wonwoo with exaggerated sympathy in his voice as he returned Ms. Jeon's hug.

"When is he not?" she asked with a loud sigh to which Wonwoo scoffed.

"Ma, you tease me just as much." Wonwoo retorted.

"Me? When have I ever? I am nothing but kind. I am a delight. A pure blessing." she announced defensively, letting go of Mingyu to throw her hands over her chest in offence.

"She's only this nice when you're here." Wonwoo told Mingyu who just laughed.

"As if you could prove it." Ms. Jeon challenged, crossing her arms.

"I would if we didn't have work to do. We're going to be in my room. I just thought it might make your day to see your wannabe grandchild."

"Ah, yes. He brings the joy in my life that you never do." she replied with a wistful smile, placing a hand over her heart.

"Likewise."

Wonwoo suppressed a smile as he gestured for Mingyu to follow him upstairs to his bedroom.

"If people didn't know your relationship with your grandma they'd think you two hate each other." Mingyu commented when they entered the room, letting Socks slip in before he shut the door behind them.

"Sometimes I think we do." Wonwoo joked, dropping his backpack on the floor and plopping down on his bed. Socks jumped onto the bed and curled into a comfortable position against his side, nudging his hand with her nose as a prompt for him to pet her. She let out quiet purrs of contentment when Wonwoo indulged her, absently running his fingers through her soft fur.

Mingyu took his mathematics binder out of his backpack before joining Wonwoo on the bed, sitting cross legged next to him. He rolled his eyes when he looked at the older to see his eyes closed.

"Why do you always get so tired when I'm around? We're supposed to be studying." Mingyu said, poking his side.

"When did you get so boring and since when are you so pushy about homework?"

"I'm not trying to fail in my last year and you didn't answer my question."

"It's easier to sleep when there's someone else here." Wonwoo murmured, although in all honesty it was because it was easier to sleep when Mingyu specifically was there. Something about the other boy's presence put him at ease.

"Well, I came here to study. Not to be your sleeping medication. At least open your eyes."

Wonwoo groaned, but begrudgingly opened his eyes after a few more moments and gave Mingyu an unimpressed look. The brunette just chuckled at his hostility before beginning to explain the work that had been done in class.

The elder of the two couldn't even bring himself to listen to the words that were coming out of Mingyu's mouth and just let his eyes wander carelessly over his room. It was amazingly clean for a teen boy's room; mainly because Wonwoo sometimes occupied his time with tidying up when he couldn't sleep. His white walls were loitered with posters of RnB and hip-hop artists he favoured, way more Lupe Fiasco posters than Wonwoo would like to admit, as well as a few pictures Junhui had taken in his photography class and gave to Wonwoo on random occasions. Junhui claimed it was soothing to being surrounded by "aesthetically pleasing" images-- which really just seemed like him complimenting his own photography skills.

Woonwoo's eyes scanned over his navy blankets before moving to Mingyu. The younger boy's warm brown eyes were half closed because of how he was looking down at his notes making his dark eyelashes stand out. He had overall soft facial features that were contrasted by a sharp jaw and a thin, straight nose. His tongue poked out every once in a while to moisten his lips since they were drying from the continuous talking.

"Are you checking me out?" Mingyu asked suddenly, snapping Wonwoo out of his daze.

"Depends. What's classified as 'checking out'?"

Mingyu snickered, rolling his eyes, "Don't be a smartass. Can you pay attention to me?"

"I am paying attention to you. Plenty of attention at that." Wonwoo retorted smartly.

"Not my face. My words."

The older boy gave a halfhearted smile at that. He was somewhat grateful that Mingyu never took him seriously when he said things that could be considered border-line flirting. Despite Wonwoo somewhat thinking he sometimes meant the things that he said, making it into a joke made it easier to avoided unwanted confrontation.

 _But is it really unwanted though?_   Wonwoo wondered, furrowing his brows, _I want answers after all, right? So wouldn't confronting the situation make it easier to figure things out?_

Sure, Wonwoo wasn't entirely certain what exactly he felt towards Mingyu, but maybe the other would know what he was feeling or at least understand it. And it would make Wonwoo feel a hell of a lot better having some type of affirmation or reassurance that he wasn't being completely weird.

"What would you say if I told you I think I might like you a lot?" Wonwoo asked abruptly, sitting up so he was face to face with Mingyu.

"Well, damn. I'd be pretty offended." he replied with frown.

"Why?"

"I would hope that after being friends for six years you'd  _know_  that you like me a lot."

Wonwoo rolled his eyes, "No, idiot. I meant maybe I like you more than what would be considered normal between friends."

"Are you just being fake-deep right now?"

Wonwoo mentally face palmed. "I'm not. I mean like-like you."

The childish explanation was the only other way he could think to break it down and it seemed to work because Mingyu's expression changed to surprise as he seemed to register what Wonwoo meant. Then he paused and stared at the older boy in confusion for a few moments before he laughed out loud, his eyes making crescents from how much he was grinning which usually made Wonwoo smile in return, but in that moment only made him scowl as red crept up his cheeks. So much for affirmation and reassurance.

"Kiss me so I know it's real." Mingyu joked.

"So glad you find this funny." Wonwoo muttered sarcastically under his breath although Mingyu didn't hear him because he was still cackling.

Maybe it was for the best the Mingyu didn't take him seriously because in that moment Wonwoo realized he didn't think he would've been able to handle it if that had been Mingyu's genuine reaction. Of course the younger was laughing because he thought it had been a practical joke, but Wonwoo couldn't help wondering if Mingyu would've laughed anyway had he thought Wonwoo was being serious. Just the thought made him feel sick to his stomach.

"I almost fell for that. Stop messing around, alright?" Mingyu said when he'd finally managed to stop laughing, "Focus on the work."

"I don't want to. Can't we just chill?" Wonwoo asked in a low voice, already flopping back down onto his back without waiting for a response. Socks who had began falling asleep hissed in protest at the movement before settling back down against Wonwoo's side when he stilled.

"We have to--"

"Please. I'm tired." he persisted, purposely making himself sound dejected so the other would feel bad.

Mingyu hesitated, frowning as he took in the seemingly permanent dark bags under Wonwoo's eyes and his fatigued expression, "Fine, but only for a bit. I'll give you half an hour to take a power nap while I'll go pick up some iced coffee from the convenience store. Then you wake up and we study. Deal?"

"Deal. Can you just wait until I fall asleep to leave?"

"Alright."

Wonwoo didn't have to wait too long in silence until Mingyu got bored and the sounds of him restlessly shifting and flipping through his notes soothed the older boy to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> damn i finally updated :0 sorry it took so long, but i'm back on board!!! :D THANK YOU so so so much for reading <3 pls leave kudos and let me know what ya think^^


	3. Chapter 3

"Wonwoo."

_Ignore him and he'll go away._

"Wonwoo."

_Ignore him and he'll go away._

"Wonwoo."

_Ignore him and--_

"Hey, wake up!" Seungcheol practically yelled as he shook Wonwoo vigorously.

"You're so annoying." Wonwoo murmured tiredly, irritated about being pulled out of the deepest sleep he'd had in a long time.

Wonwoo loved his older brother, he really did, but it was hard to muster up any of those feelings of love so early in the morning. His mind was still fuzzy as remnants of his hazy dream tried to rise to the surface, but never quite made it-- not that he cared to remember. He was too preoccupied with being annoyed. Once he was awake, Wonwoo knew he wouldn't be able to fall back asleep and just the thought of that bothered him immensely. 

"Damn. Can't you ever greet me nicely in the morning?" Seungcheol asked, opening Wonwoo's navy curtains at which Wonwoo grimaced when the sunlight that suddenly filled the room momentarily blinded him.

"No." he replied, pulling the covers over his head.

Seungcheol laughed, hitting the mass of blankets that Wonwoo was under. The younger poked his hand out from under the covers to shoot Seungcheol the bird which earned him another hit in response.

"Don't be an asswipe so early in the morning. You have to leave for school soon. It's almost 7:30. Ma made breakfast and your friend is downstairs." Seungcheol explained making Wonwoo perk up, finally peaking his head out of the blankets.

He had figured it was significantly earlier than that considering how rare it was that he needed to be woken up in the morning. Usually it was the other way around with Wonwoo needing to wake up his brother when he accidentally slept in. It had been the first time in a while that Wonwoo had managed to sleep through the night without his racing thoughts keeping him up.

"Which friend? Mingyu?" Wonwoo asked at which Seungcheol raised a brow.

"You make it sound like you have a plethora of friends that could be here. Don't you only have one? Maybe one and a half at best? Since that Jun kid doesn't seem to completely hate you."

"Ha. Ha." Wonwoo replied dryly, sitting up slowly and pushing off his covers.

He hadn't expected Mingyu to end up staying the night, but it explained why he had managed to stay asleep through the night. The other boy never ended up waking Wonwoo up from his nap to study, deciding Wonwoo needed rest more than anything. Mingyu had unintentionally fallen asleep as well, but considering how much time he spent at Wonwoo's place it wasn't anything unusual for him to sleep over.

"I'm going to head out. I probably won't see you later because I picked up a shift after my seminar. You might be asleep by the time I get back." Seungcheol said, raising his index and middle finger in a peace sign as a goodbye.

"I doubt I'll be sleeping so I'll see you later. Have fun doing adult shit. Going to seminars. Working. Taxes."

"And you have fun doing teen shit. Trolling people of the internet. Partying. Drugs. No meth though, okay? That stuff is wild."

"No promises."

Seungcheol let out a small laugh as he left the room, leaving his brother to get ready. Between the two siblings Seungcheol was definitely the more excitable and energetic one, but they both held common ground with their dry sense of humor and snarky sarcasm. Seungcheol was twenty-one, going on twenty-two in a few months. He studied nuclear radiology at a highly renowned local university and still made time to have a part-time job. His workload made it difficult for him to have a social life outside of school, yet he still managed to have many friends he spent time with in the little spare time he had.

Wonwoo on the other hand was content keeping to himself for the most part even if he did have time to spare. Sometimes Wonwoo thought how busy Seungcheol kept himself was an attempt to distract himself from his own feelings, but Seungcheol would never admit to that. They had both experienced the same traumatic events, but they evidently had completely opposite ways of coping.

"Sweetie?" Wonwoo heard Ms. Jeon call from downstairs.

"Coming!" he called back, finally stumbling out of bed.

He made quick work of showering, getting dressed, and attempting to fix his disheveled hair before he trudged downstairs to the kitchen. He gave a lazy wave to Mingyu and his grandmother who both responded with a rather cheerful, _"Good morning."_ There wasn't much talking over the breakfast of oats and fruit aside from Ms. Jeon bidding the boys 'goodbye' and giving them both small pecks on the cheek before she left for her spinning class; saying something about the music focus for that day being songs by some 'Seventeen' group neither boys had ever heard of.

"Your grandma never fails to amaze me." Mingyu commented when he and Wonwoo left shortly after, walking to the school that was only a few blocks away from Wonwoo's home.

"After living with her for so long I've gotten used to her antics." Wonwoo replied with a chuckle.

The weather was almost uncomfortably warm and both boys had left the house dressed rather lightly. Wonwoo wore dark jeans and a plain white tee, while Mingyu wore a pair of Wonwoo's black track pants with a graphic t-shirt.

The older boy occasionally let his gaze fall on Mingyu for a second too long every few moments. Something about seeing the other wearing his clothes was pleasing to the eye. The outfit wasn't exactly special and it honestly just looked like Mingyu was wearing his own clothes since it was so basic, but Wonwoo knew how the tags of his clothes had his initials written on them (something his mother had ingrained in him to do when he was a kid) so Mingyu was basically walking around with Wonwoo's name on him. It was a pretty stupid thought, but it made a smile tug at his lips none the less.

"You slept through the night." Mingyu noted after a few moments of comfortable silence.

"Uh, yeah," Wonwoo replied, "I think it helped having you there."

"I should just live with you if it means you'll finally get some sleep." Mingyu joked and the older rolled his eyes.

"That'd be pretty great if you didn't have a family that would miss the hell out of you. Plus, your sister scares me. She might actually kill me for stealing you."

Mingyu laughed, nodding in agreement. He had a strong relationship with his family members, especially his sister. She was extremely protective of her overly sweet younger brother despite Mingyu being able to hold his own. Sure, he was extremely nice, but he was nothing close to a pushover although she thought otherwise.

"Alright, true. I guess we need a different plan then. What about having me there makes it easier for you to sleep?" the younger asked, picking up his pace a bit after a quick glance at the time on his phone. They had exactly 12 minutes to get to school and in their mathematics class.

"I think it's just your presence. Focusing on you helps me feel calm." Wonwoo replied honestly without thinking.

Mingyu made a face, searching the other's expression to try and figure out if he was kidding. He wasn't sure how to take that comment because it seemed a bit unusual. He couldn't even tell if Wonwoo was being serious or not since he was the type of person to say a joke with a straight expression.

When the older boy didn't say anything else, Mingyu hesitated for a few moments before nodding, "I see. Then I guess all I gotta do is just keep existing." he joked.

"Yup." Wonwoo said slowly, drawing out the word as he shoved his hands in his pockets to hide how they were trembling.

Sudden anxiety was building up from Mingyu's uncertain response and Wonwoo found it difficult to disguise his discomfort. He hadn't hesitated to answer because he was used to telling Mingyu everything and anything, but he hadn't thought about how he needed to be more cautious because he was experiencing odd feelings. Tension was so foreign between the two of them and the last thing Wonwoo wanted was to be the reason that changed.

The silence that lasted the rest of their walk to the school wasn't as comfortable as it had been before-- or at least, that was how it felt on Wonwoo's end. Mingyu on the other hand looked like he had already moved on and was just having a swell time enjoying the walk.

Wonwoo was glad when they finally entered the school and went to their lockers where Junhui was waiting, leaning against Wonwoo's locker looking like some cool-kid anime protagonist with his foot propped up against it. Junhui broke the silence the second he saw the other boys.

"Yo." he greeted, smiling at the two of them.

"Jun." Mingyu replied with a grin as he unlocked his locker.

"You don't look as shitty as usual. What happened?" Junhui asked Wonwoo who just rolled his eyes at the insulting compliment.

"Get off my locker, dickwad." Wonwoo said, disregarding the comment.

"No 'please'?"

Wonwoo shot Junhui an unamused stare, but complied because he didn't feel like arguing, "Please get off my locker, dickwad."

"Omit the 'dickwad' part."

"Screw you."

Junhui snickered, clapping Wonwoo on the back warmly before pushing off his locker, "Damn, all this abuse I suffer makes me wonder why I'm even your friend."

"Because deep down you love me and nobody else can put up with your shit. Mingyu is only your friend because he's too nice to reject you." Wonwoo answered simply as he put in his lock combination.

"Hey, don't bring me into this." Mingyu said, putting his hands up defensively.

"What kind of best friend are you?" Wonwoo asked, turning on him when he'd opened his locker, "You're supposed to be on my side."

"No thanks. I'm a pacifist. You can fight your own battles."

"Pacifist my ass. You used to--" Wonwoo retorted only to be cut off by Junhui making a noise of excitement.

"Wonwoo! You're getting secret admirer notes?" he exclaimed, picking up a folded pink sticky note that had fallen out of Wonwoo's locker when he had opened the door.

"Secret admirer?" Mingyu asked, his interest peaking as he took the note from Junhui and opened it.

"Wow... so it's possible for people other than Mingyu to like you. Who would've thought? I wonder who it could be?" Junhui teased, curiously peaking at the note in Mingyu's hands.

Wonwoo shrugged disinterestedly, letting the two of them fawn over the note while he got his books. He had avoided romantic relationships for a majority of his time in high school and his final year most likely wouldn't be an exception, because when he was in them they were only pleasant for a short while before they became a hassle.

He didn't have enough fingers to count the amount of times random girls had confessed to him on a whim because they thought he was attractive, just to get disappointed when they started dating. It took Wonwoo a while to open up to people, but they always expected him to change his personality or tendencies for them. The last thing Wonwoo was willing to do was to change for someone that got infatuated without getting to know him first.

"What the fuck?" Mingyu hissed which almost made Wonwoo drop his books from surprise.

It was rare that Mingyu swore and when he did it was usually out of excitement, but the pure disgust in his voice made it clear that it most definitely wasn't excitement that he was feeling.

"What?" Wonwoo asked.

"Who the hell would say that? To you of all people? I'll kick their fucking ass." Mingyu stated, practically seething when he handed over the note he had crumpled in his hand to the older boy.

If it wasn't for the fact that Mingyu was alarmingly angry Wonwoo would have slyly asked him what happened to his pacifism claim from only a few moments ago, but he held his tongue. Even Junhui who always had something to say looked stunned, standing there in confusion. Curious to know what had made the others so taken aback Wonwoo uncrumpled the paper and quietly read the note to himself.

_"Go suck cock somewhere else, faggot."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's nearly 1am and in 4hrs i have to wake up to get ready for a lecture???? why am i not sleeping rn??? helppp??? 
> 
> but me making bad decisions aside, thank you so much for reading!!! pls leave kudos if you wanna and i'd really love to hear what you think!
> 
> -alex


	4. Chapter 4

"It's seriously not a big deal," Wonwoo repeated for what felt like the millionth time in a span of minutes, "I don't care what some random low-life has to say about me. Now, if it was you or Jun that put that note in my locker it'd be a pretty intense plot twist, but I'm fairly convinced it wasn't. I promise I won't cry myself to sleep over it."

Wonwoo winced, holding the phone away from his ear when Mingyu raised his voice. He glanced at Socks who shifted where she was laying at the end of the bed from the sudden noise before stilling once again with sleep. Wonwoo had been speaking quietly and calmly as to not bother her which heavily contrasted Mingyu who was practically throwing a fit and was somehow bothering Socks more than Wonwoo was even through the phone.

 _"That's not the point!"_  Mingyu argued over the line,  _"The point is someone is talking shit and talk shit get hit."_

"What happened to your pacifism?"

_"It doesn't apply when you're the one being messed with."_

"You didn't back me up when Jun was messing with me earlier though."

_"Wonwoo."_

"Okay, chill. I'm kidding. I don't know if you're implying you want to literally fight whoever put that in my locker or not, but no thank you. I don't care enough to fight someone who is too much of a wimp to say shit to my face. But hey, I appreciate your passion. You're hot when you're defending me."

_"Quit joking around."_

Wonwoo frowned at Mingyu's stern tone, pausing the game-play video he had been watching and sitting upright on his bed. The younger boy had been going on about the note all day which puzzled Wonwoo. He himself had gotten over it almost immediately; not even slightly concerned about the anonymous insult. Mingyu on the other hand refused to stop talking about it.

"You shouldn't care so much. It was just one note." Wonwoo said, finally matching Mingyu's seriousness.

_"It's bullying, Wonwoo. Should I be okay with that?"_

"Well... no, but--"

_"And why the hell would they say that about you of all people?"_

"What? Would there be a problem if I was a so-called 'cock sucking faggot'? Mind you those are the note's words, not mine."

Mingyu groaned. _"Why are you being difficult?"_

"I'm not being difficult. I asked a simple question." Wonwoo retorted and he heard a sigh on the other line.

_"No, you'd still be my best friend."_

Wonwoo was genuinely surprised by the wave of relief that washed over him at those words. The fact that Mingyu wasn't bothered by the idea of Wonwoo possibly being attracted to guys-- or well, one guy-- was somewhat the reassurance he had been looking for. Sure, Mingyu's answer might've been different had he known Wonwoo was referring to him, but he didn't want to dwell on that possibility.

"Then everything is perfectly okay. The only opinions that matter to me at school are yours and Jun's therefore I really don't care what anyone else thinks and you shouldn't either. Alright?" Wonwoo insisted.

He chuckled at how he could practically see the defiant scowl that was probably on Mingyu's face when he begrudgingly muttered,  _"Fine. I'm going to bed."_

"Yeah, it's pretty late," Wonwoo replied when he saw the time on his bedside digital clock read 12:48 am. The boys had been talking for nearly two hours.

_"Goodnight, see you tomorrow."_

"See you tomorrow. Promise you'll stop stressing."

There was another sigh before Mingyu replied, _"Whatever."_ as another reluctant way to say 'okay.'

Wonwoo waited until he heard the beeping that indicated the line had been cut to let out his own low sigh. He was really hoping Mingyu would take his word for it and trust that he wasn't bothered. Knowing the younger, he probably wouldn't be able to sleep well if he was worried about the whole situation. Wonwoo hadn't taken the note seriously because what kind of loser even left notes in lockers these days? If they were so scared of confrontation they weren't even worth Wonwoo wasting brain cells being upset over it. He already had enough on his plate to worry about.

Shaking his head, Wonwoo shut his laptop without bothering to turn it off since he'd probably return to using it shortly and placed it on his bedside table before getting up to get some water from downstairs.

He wasn't surprised to find the kitchen lights already on and his brother sitting on a bar stool at the island counter eating cereal and using his phone with a nearly full slushy sitting untouched on the counter. He had probably just gotten in from his part-time job at a 24-hour convenience store.

"Why are you awake so late on a school night?" Seungcheol asked through a mouthful of Cornflakes.

"Don't act so surprised. I told you I would be awake. The real question is why are you having cereal at one in the morning?"

"It's never too late for cereal."

"True." Wonwoo nodded before motioning towards the slushy and cheekily asking, "Is that for me?"

Seungcheol laughed as he slid the drink to Wonwoo. "I guess it is now."

Wonwoo said quick thanks, aborting his mission to get water as he grabbed a spoon and hopped on the counter, sitting cross-legged in front of Seungcheol whose lips quirked up in a smile.

"Y'know, ma would kill you if she saw you sitting on her prized marble counter top." the elder of the two noted.

"Ma doesn't have to know." Wonwoo replied with a shrug, helping himself to Seungcheol's cereal which resulted in Seungcheol muttering, "Get your own." but he didn't make any move to stop Wonwoo.

After having taken a few bites of the cereal, Wonwoo took a couple sips of his newly acquired slushy (which had turned out to be mango flavoured), making a face of the rather _interesting_ combination of flavours. It made Seungcheol who had been watching him laugh before he spoke up.

"Now you see why I stopped drinking it?" he asked.

"Precisely. Cereal and slushies don't mix."

"That's what you get for stealing my cereal. I hope the aftertaste haunts you."

"You're such a kind brother." Wonwoo replied sarcastically and Seungcheol's response was flashing a bright smile.

"I know right? I think I deserve an award. To keep up with the whole good brother thing I'm obligated to ask you how you're doing, right? So how's life, kid?"

"Kid?" Wonwoo scoffed since Seungcheol was only four years older than him, "It's alright. Not great but not bad either. Tolerable. How about you?"

"It's pretty solid. I never got a chance to tell you that I met a girl and we've been dating for a few weeks now."

"You? Yeah, right. How could you possibly make time for another human being?"

Seungcheol rolled his eyes, "Contrary to popular belief I have a life outside of school and work."

And very contrary to popular belief it was. Wonwoo couldn't remember the last time Seungcheol had mentioned being in a relationship since he always claimed he was too busy to maintain one. It was nice to hear his brother was finally interested enough in someone to pursue them. 

"Who is she?" Wonwoo asked.

"A senior at my university doing her masters in bio-medicine. Her name's Minah."

"Masters? Wait, how old is she?"

"Twenty-seven."

Wonwoo smirked and shot his brother a playful wink, "Going for the older ladies, huh?"

"Of course. You know I like more mature women. They're the ones who turn out to be freaks." he joked.

"Whenever I end up meeting this girlfriend of yours I'm going to tell her you're only dating her because she has potential to be a freak." Wonwoo stated and Seungcheol nodded in acknowledgement.

"Thanks for the heads up. Now I know to never let you meet her. All jokes a side, I really appreciate that she's independent. I mean, even you know my lifestyle makes it hard to put a lot of time into a relationship so it's nice she's still there when I need her."

Wonwoo raised a brow, "As in a convenient fuck or an actual girlfriend?"

"An actual girlfriend. I don't have time for convenient fucks. If I'm investing any time in anyone it has to last." Seungcheol explained, taking Wonwoo's spoon and getting up to wash the now empty cereal bowl.

"Well, I'm happy for you. Just don't ditch me completely for her because I rarely see you as it is."

"Aww," Seungcheol gushed dramatically, "is my baby brother missing my love and affection?"

"You wish. I just need someone to play video games with me when Mingyu and Jun are busy." Wonwoo answered smoothly.

Seungcheol grinned when he caught onto the fibbing and playfully ruffled his younger brother's hair in reassurance replying, "I wouldn't ditch you for anyone. What about you? Any ladies in your life that have potential to steal you away from me that I should be concerned about?"

"Nah."

"How is that possible with Jeon genes? Yeah, you're an overall prick sometimes, but at least you're attractive and have a way with words."

"It's not that girls don't like me, jerk," Wonwoo retorted as he slid off the counter, "I just don't want to date any right now. It never works out."

Seungcheol nodded thoughtfully and looked like he was actually going to say something serious, but that was proven false when he opened his mouth.

"I see, I see," the older mused, "So what I'm getting is you're currently looking for some dick?"

"Oh, piss off." Wonwoo muttered, dismissing himself from the kitchen but Seungcheol followed closely behind him after turning off the lights.

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding." Seungcheol laughed, throwing an arm over Wonwoo's shoulder that the younger shrugged off so he could walk up the stairs without Seungcheol leaning his weight on him.

"Go to bed. There's class in the morning."

"When did you become the older brother?"

"When you decided to be immature." Wonwoo deadpanned making Seungcheol chuckle as he made his way to his bedroom door.

"Touché," Seungcheol noted, pausing before he entered his room, "but Wonwoo?"

"Mhm?"

"Are you sure you're doing alright? It seems like something is bothering you. Ma told me you haven't been sleeping again either."

"You and ma are talking behind my back?" Wonwoo asked, feigning a scandalized tone.

"Don't deflect." 

 _Jeez, everyone is so serious today,_ Wonwoo thought when he recalled his conversation with Mingyu who also hadn't been on board with his apathetic jokes for once.

"I'm fine, don't worry. I'll figure it out." he told told Seungcheol who's expression took on a somberness that was extremely rare to see on him.

"You know I'm here for you, right?" the older asked, "I know I seem really busy all the time and you might think I don't have time for you, but that's not true. No matter what you're a priority."

It was hard to miss the guilt in Seungcheol's face. He was the type of person to feel bad about not doing enough when he was already doing the best he could and it was something that made Wonwoo feel bad for his brother. Wonwoo wasn't someone who really talked about his feelings when it came to serious things and the few times he did was when they were forced out of him. Unfortunately, it made Seungcheol feel like he was doing something wrong as an older brother if Wonwoo didn't confide in him even though that wasn't the case at all. Wonwoo just disliked burdening people with his problems, especially when he didn't find them important enough to make others fret over them needlessly.

"I know you're there for me when I need you." Wonwoo assured him.

"Are you being honest or are you saying that so I leave you alone?" That was the closest to prying that Seungcheol would ever get. He didn't like pressing Wonwoo for information; always remaining cautious about pushing his brother too much. He acted as though Wonwoo could break at any moment.

"I'm being honest. Thank you. Seriously."

"Your welcome... wow uh, so that's that. This is getting grossly emotional." Seungcheol replied with an exaggerated grimace.

"Says the one who brought it up."

"Hey, I was performing my brotherly duties. I had no choice but to ask." he explained making Wonwoo smile a bit at the obvious lie.

"At this rate you really do deserve that award."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you're having a good day ♡


End file.
